The present invention relates to a system for properly identifying the patient, specimens and blood units throughout all stages of a blood transfusion sequence, starting with the patient registration at the hospital admission desk. The system ensures that the patient receives the proper type of blood unit and provides a combination lock which may be only opened with the proper code assigned to the patient.
It is well known that the technology for drawing, storing and subsequently issuing blood units to the proper patient is susceptible to human error and that an urgent need exists for improvement. In the prevention of blood transfusion errors, which may be fatal to the patient, correct identification between the patient and the blood type is of utmost importance.
In most blood transfusion systems, there are several stages where reliance must be placed upon human visual checks. Starting with the drawing of a blood specimen from a patient, through internal blood bank procedures and ending with delivery and administration of the blood unit to the patient, visual checks must be made at every step of the system to ensure the proper application of blood to the patient. Quite obviously, any system which relies upon visual checks is susceptible to human error.
Systems are known which incorporate a holder bag in which the blood unit container is stored and wherein a combination locking cap is placed over the holder bag opening. The combination on the locking cap is set to match a code given to the patient and illustrated on the patient I. D. wristband. The locking cap may not be removed unless the code properly matches that attached to the patient. The combination is set by physically removing a tab from, or inserting a peg into, either the cap or the hollow member surrounding the opening of the holder bag. A drawback to this system is that the setting of the combination requires additional tools to break the tab or insert the peg and that, once set, the combination is fixedly attached to the bag, which renders the bag unusable thereafter. Once the blood unit is used, the locking cap, along with the holder bag must be disposed of to prevent subsequent improper usage.
It is also well known to provide a flexible storage bag having means to lock an opening thereof to prevent unauthorized access to the contents of the bag. However, these systems typically incorporate a key lock structure physically attached to the bag, thereby preventing the usage of the lock with another bag structure.